Better Homes And Gardens Devil's Food Cake

halloween desserts pumpkin and devil food layer cake recipe

Danielle Occhiogrosso

This layer cake (with frosting ghosts!) makes for a chocolatey dessert and hauntingly beautiful centerpiece.

Yields: 16 servings

Prep Time: 1 hour 30 mins

Total Time: 1 hour 55 mins

Pumpkin Layers

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour

2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. Kosher salt

1 1/2 c. pure pumpkin

3 tbsp. molasses (not blackstrap)

1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

3/4 c. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp

1 c. granulated sugar

3 large eggs

Chocolate Layers

1 1/3 c. all-purpose flour

2/3 c. Unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. Kosher salt

1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temp

2/3 c. packed brown sugar

2/3 c. granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1 c. low-fat buttermilk

Buttercream

1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp

1 lb. confectioners' sugar

2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

2 tbsp. heavy cream

Ganache

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

4 oz. heavy cream

Decoration

2 large egg whites

1/2 c. granulated sugar

thin chocolate sandwich cookies (we used Oreo Thins)

mini chocolate chips

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Heat oven to 350°F.
Make Pumpkin Layers: Lightly grease two 8-inch cake pans; line bottoms with parchment paper. In medium bowl, whisk flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, combine pumpkin, molasses and vanilla.
In large bowl of electric mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and beat in eggs, one at a time. Alternate adding flour and pumpkin mixture, beating until just smooth.
Divide batter evenly between cake pans. Bake until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to wire rack; let cool 5 minutes before removing from pans to cool completely.
Make Chocolate Layers: Lightly grease two 8-inch cake pans; line bottoms with parchment paper. In large bowl, whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. In large bowl of electric mixer, beat butter and sugars on high speed until light and creamy, 4 to 5 minutes. Reduce speed to medium-low and beat in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Working in 3 batches, alternate adding flour and buttermilk, beating until just smooth.
Divide batter evenly between cake pans. Bake until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, 25 to 27 minutes. Transfer to wire rack; let cool 5 minutes before removing from pans to cool completely.
Make Buttercream: In large bowl of electric mixer, beat butter on low speed until smooth. Add confectioners' sugar; beat on low speed 2 minutes. Beat in vanilla and heavy cream.
Make Ganache: Place chocolate in medium bowl. In small saucepan, heat cream until hot but not boiling; pour over chocolate. Let stand 1 minute, then stir until melted and smooth. Set aside to cool and slightly thicken until no longer runny.
Once cakes are cool, evenly trim tops with large serrated knife. Place chocolate layer on 8-inch cake board and top with scant 1 cup buttercream, pushing over edges. Top with pumpkin layer and repeat with frosting and cakes, finishing with layer of frosting. With large offset spatula, smooth buttercream on top and sides of cake into thin layer. Refrigerate until ganache has cooled.
Once ganache has thickened slightly, pour onto center of cake and immediately coax toward edges using small offset spatula.
Make Decorations: Place egg whites and sugar in large bowl set over saucepan with 1 inch of just-boiled water. Whisk constantly until sugar dissolves (it should no longer feel grainy), about 5 minutes. Using electric mixer, whisk until stiff, glossy peaks form, 7 to 10 minutes. Transfer to large disposable piping bag and snip off end to make 3/4-inch opening. Pipe ghosts onto sandwich cookies. Immediately press in chocolate chips for eyes and mouth. Place on top of finished cake.

Nutritional info (per serving): About 690 calories, 8g protein, 92g carbohydrates, 35g fat (21g saturated), 3g fiber, 330mg sodium.

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